'Rings', Whale Rider actress nominated for Oscars

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LOS ANGELES - Epic "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" has topped the list of Oscar nominees with 11 nominations, followed by seafaring adventure, "Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World" with 10. Both films were included in the best film category.

Joining them on the list of nominees for best film were crime thriller "Mystic River," horse racing tale "Seabiscuit," and "Lost in Translation," about two disenchanted Americans in Tokyo.

Kiwi actress Keisha Castle-Hughes has been nominated in the best actress category for her work in NZ film "Whale Rider", along with Diane Keaton for "Something's Gotta Give", Samantha Morton for "In America", Charlize Theron for "Monster" and Naomi Watts for "21 Grams".

Best actor nominations went to Johnny Depp for "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl," Ben Kingsley for "House of Sand and Fog," Jude Law for "Cold Mountain," Bill Murray for "Lost in Translation" and Sean Penn for "Mystic River."

Nominations for directing went to Peter Jackson for "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King," Clint Eastwood for "Mystic River," Peter Weir for "Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World," Sofia Coppola for "Lost in Translation" and Fernando Meirelles for "City of God."

Supporting actor nominations were given to Alec Baldwin in "The Cooler," Benicio Del Toro for "21 Grams," Djimon Hounsou for "In America," Tim Robbins in "Mystic River," and Ken Watanabe in "The Last Samurai."

Nominations for supporting actress went to Renee Zellweger for "Cold Mountain," Holly Hunter in "Thirteen," Marcia Gay Harden in "Mystic River," Patricia Clarkson for "Pieces of April" and Shohreh Aghdashloo in "House of Sand and Fog."

The Oscars, which are award by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, are the US film industry's top honors and will be given out in a gala ceremony from Los Angeles on February 29.

- REUTERS